Combating HCAIs using the latest technology

The fight against healthcare associated infections (HAIs) covers many areas, but foremost among these are hand hygiene and surface disinfection. Studies suggest that around 80% of all infectious diseases are spread by touch.1 This can be through personal contact or touching a contaminated surface. It follows that breaking this chain should help reduce the number of infections. 

The link between hand hygiene and the spread of infections was established long ago. Yet there is still much to be done to change the behaviour of individual healthcare workers to optimise compliance with hand hygiene at the recommended points to improve patient safety. The best healthcare sites globally have reduced their infection rates to around 5% through diligence and a rigorous application of best practice. In the UK the average infection rate is nearer to 10%. 

The World Health Organization promotes hand hygiene through a number of high-profile initiatives. Its annual ‘Clean Your Hands Day’, for example, was established in 2005, and has been a global success. This, and related WHO programmes, are based around the concept of a multimodal hand hygiene improvement strategy. This incorporates five components or building blocks including system change, training, evaluation, awareness, and an institutional safety climate that lead to long-term and sustainable improvements. This framework is complemented by the WHO’s focus on the five moments of hand hygiene – the critical times when healthcare professionals should wash their hands: before touching a patient; before a procedure; after body fluid exposure; after touching a patient, and after touching patient surroundings.